Sunday, July 26, 2009

Life is like a bunch of Habanero Peppers...


The past two weeks have been at the same time hectic and slow...with a new project winding up and with the sense of anticipation that life as I knew it before May, will exist again...unsure of my reaction to it...we will see.
K1 took his parents to Las Vegas last week and I was the sole trooper on the home front, managing with K2...we had a blast. Farmer's market has been a firm fixture in my life the past two weeks - throwing my way a varied bounty of fresh fruits and vegetables - from juicy peaches to crisp Asian Pears to pretty blueberries --- and not to forget the perky tomatoes, plump opo squashes, complex sinquas, fresh chinese brocollis, the mystery lemon cucumbers and the oh-so-spicy Habanero chilli peppers...I had the person buying Okras next to me (well meaning person...) say you know those are Habaneros ...right...really really hot...
The Habaneros were a sight to behold - some green, some orange and others bright red....beautiful specimens...I used a red habanero in a pasta dish I was making and it was not killing hot, the next one I used in a Huevos Rancheros and it had me running to open the windows while the rest of the family was sneezing and coughing when the spice from the cooking hit them....the Huevos turned out deliciously spicy...umm no one else wanted to try it ...Reminds me of Forrest Gump's saying - Life is like a box of chocolates...in this case a bunch of Habaneros and you don't know how spicy they will be...I sure has fun trying to make spicy hot dishes with this new kitchen companion...next on the list is a peach salsa with habanero...
K2 has been not keeping well, what with a throat infection and fever the past couple days. We are feeding him hot soups and keeping him inside the house. I worry about him but I think falling sick is a part of growing up, so I am trying not to play the part of the paranoid mom. I am currently curled up next to a book called "Shark's Fin and Sichuan Pepper" by Fuchsia Dunlop...Don't Judge me please...I love spicy chinese food. I am vegetating today as I know I have a long work week to look forward to...

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Social Networks...


A question plagues my mind constantly - How social am I as an individual? Having an undergraduate degree in Sociology and a masters in Organizational Behavior really gets the mental juices flowing from time to time...the constant knock!knock! in the mind gets tiring and no ready answers are available.
How do you describe social?
(A) The Amount of time you spend with people
(B) The number of friends you have on Facebook/the number of comments you get on Facebook
(C) The number of personal emails you receive in a day (no! junk email doesn't count)
(D) The number of evenings where you have plans and outings
(E) Social Events/Parties....
The list goes on...I find the idealogy behind the Six Degrees of Separation pretty creepy and at the same time profound...maybe the human web does exist. If it doesn't what is this attraction (correction!) addiction to being Linked in, Being Connected on Face Book....and if that is not enough creating more traffic with tweets...is it my desire to be popular, my desire to exhibit my superior intellectual compentence (BS), my desire to be social, be heard...WHAT?
Anyway, at the end of the day, these social networks are a boon and a bane...they expose the sheer irrelavence of some of my activities (which I strive to tell myself are critical to my existence)....I am sure there are a number of you that agree with my viewpoint (and the fact that I care shows that I am far from the anti-social person, I would love to paint myself to be).
For now all I can say is that these Social Networks are making my evenings a little more exciting, I look forward to "Notifications" on Facebook or "Accepted" on Linked In...makes me feel a little bit more of a part of something a lot larger than me and makes me feel relavent and needed and wanted in the big picture..comprende?...if not go ahead update your status on Facebook, post some more pictures on Facebook...add some more connections on Linked In and you are on the path to Social Nirvana, that I still seem to be exploring...


Sunday, July 5, 2009

The inquisitive mind


The Brutally Honest Personality Test ...


I just found out I was a "Borefest" --


One word. Boring. Sums you up to a tee. You're responsible, trustworthy, serious and down to earth. Boring. Boring. Boring.
You play by the rules. You follow tradition. You encourage structure.
You insist that EVERYBODY do EVERYTHING by the book. Seriously, is there even an ounce of imagination in that little brain of yours? I mean, what's the point of imagination, right? It has no practical value...
As far as you're concerned, abstract theories can go screw themselves. You just want the facts, all the facts and nothing but the facts.
Oh. And you're a perfectionist. About everything. You know that the previous sentence was gramattically incorrect and that "gramattically" was spelt wrong. Your financial records are correct to 25 decimal places and your bedroom is in pristine condition. In fact, you even don't sleep on your bed anymore for fear that you might crease the sheets....


This personality test did give me a lot of food for thought :)

How was your long weekend? I spent Saturday at the Oakland Zoo with my son, Sunday I had a late brunch with family and then a hindi movie "New York". Sunday as usual was a trip to the Farmer's Market for fruits and vegetables -- Carrots, Zucchini, Sinqua, Eggplant, Tomatoes, Peaches and Plums are on the menu for this week....


Hope you all had a wonderful and relaxed weekend!


Sunday, June 28, 2009

The Seventh Daughter...


I am not feeling 100% today...maybe its the heat...or maybe it just is but I had very little sleep last night and lay tossing and turning till 1.00 AM in the bed. I walked into my closet (which is almost the size of a little bedroom and 50% empty :))...and started reading this book -- The Seventh Daughter.

I have absolutely adored most chinese food - from the comforting noodle soups to the spicy hot pots to the energizing fresh vegetable stirfries to the uplifting pot stickers (yes food can change my mood...)

I did not stare at recipes or the beautiful pictures...I was reading Cecilia's story. Her wonderful story about her siblings, her fairy tale childhood, her relationship with her Um-ma (mother)...her sisters Qin and Sophie and her sheer grit and will power to start something from nothing and make it work (The Mandarin on the Ghiradelli Square)...I have never been to the Mandarin but after reading Cecilia's story, this is a place I want to visit...I want to try her famous dumplings and the Beggar's Chicken. I want to try the tea smoked duck even though I am not overly fond of meat and the reason is the sheer beauty of this woman's culinary journey from Beijing to Yunnan to Shanghai to Tokyo to San Francisco...the visuals in my mind were of tradition, obedience, sheer love, warmth and family....not the steaming pots of food. She makes me want to go down to the expensive Mandarin Restaurant in the city and try a slice of her story and life...
Some time later I chanced to glance up and the time was 3.30 AM and I was getting sleepy...saying Good Night to Cecilia I went to bed to dream of Dimsums and comforting soups...Thank You Madame Chiang!

Monday, June 22, 2009

Seven Habits of highly effective People...


I was but 20 years old when I was handed my first copy of Covey. A who had given me the book had written - "The whole point about reading such a book is, if it doesn't come naturally, leave it".Initially the book was heavy reading but over time, I fell hook, line and sinker for Covey's principles... I have been able to go back to this book time and again and learn something new every time...

What do the 7 Habits mean to me -

1)Being Proactive - Personal choice drives a lot of your decision making -- so instead of blaming circumstances take control and responsibility for your actions and decisions
2)Visualization - Always visualize a roadmap to how your life should be and more likely than not you will try and stick to that roadmap (set personal goals and try to acheive them)
3) Integrity and Execution - It's ok to take help and delegate but integrity is key in every transaction.
4) Mutual Benefit - An attitude whereby mutually beneficial solutions are sought that satisfy the needs of oneself as well as others...it is ok to be a little selfish, but it is good to be a little selfless
5) Mutual Understanding - giving out advice before having empathetically understood a person and their situation will likely result in that advice being rejected. Thoroughly listening to another person's concerns instead of reading out your own autobiography is purported to increase the chance of establishing a working communication...people have busy lives, they don't want to hear about you...they want to talk about themselves
6) Creative Cooperation - when synergy is pursued as a habit, the result of the teamwork will exceed the sum of what each of the members could have achieved on their own. “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts. It is not about what I can acheive but rather about what the team can acheive...
7) Balanced Self-Renewal - engaging in carefully selected recreational activities. For me its Yoga, Cooking (eating) and spending time with K2.

It has been all but 2 decades of trying to internalize some of these principles into my day to day life...highly effective I am not...but I would like to think that I am on my path to getting there some day....Thanks Covey !!!

Monday, June 15, 2009

Nostalgia and a hot plate of pasta


Smells, Tastes and sometimes even textures give you the "warm & fuzzies" or the "shivers down the spine". I remember our trip to Kodaikanal every time I smell Eucalyptus...the foggy, drizzling weather and the warm, cheesy Pizza Margherita (Desi Ishtyle). Every time I see the cloth painting of the Old Man on my bedroom wall I remember the wonderful trip I took to Kalimpong with Ma and Pa. I have carried that painting with me for 14 years...there is something very gentle and wise about the old man...we had brought that painting from a ruddy faced Nepali woman. I still remember her sitting inside her tent, sipping a steaming, thick glass of chai. On rare occasions I fry Chilly Pakoras ,I remember our trip to Simla -- Dad eating chai, hot pakoras and jelabis from local hawkers...Nostalgia is such a wonderful thing..it makes me get all happy, remembering back on old memories vividly - smelling the smells, remembering the conversations, remembering the people...


The past couple days have been full of the good, bads and Uglies. Let me start with the Ugly first - my excruciating visit to the dentist. The bads - the pain that followed....the goods - hanging out with Meenakshi, Shreya & Rajesh over the weekend, the hot meal (did I say it was free!) at the temple on Sunday afternoon, the fresh greens and fruits from the Farmers Market (Chinese Brocolli, Chinese Spinach, Zucchini, Cherries, Heirloom Tomatoes, Cauliflower, Peaches and Plums) and of course the Hot and Satisfying bowl of Capellini I made (sauce was made with the Heirloom Tomatoes from the Farmers Market) with a side of simply sauteed garlic greens ( Mmmm...good!)


How was your weekend?

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Slow Burn...


Some wise woman named Susan wrote a poem Slow Burn -

I wanted to be Cinderella – the Belle of the Ball at the end of the tale,
All I got was a broom and a dirty hearth,
It seems like the tale has no end…
Sweeping away the cobwebs in my mind,
Pollyanna, I am not…there is not a positive spin to my tale…
Prince Charming has been late to the party,
Fairy Godmother is missing in action…
Stuck at a dead-end junction, I wonder if there is a cross road ahead…
Yet, all this inaction seems to be burning the spirit inside…
Slow Burn…Slow Burn

Slow Burn for me has a different meaning this week...I went to my first Vinyasa Yoga class in 6 months...I held my warrior's proudly and did my backbends flexibly but for the next 3 days my muscles have been burning slowly...work wise life's been busy, personal life wise -- things have been interesting. We have my MIL visiting for 10 weeks, and she will be joined by my FIL in 2 weeks...

K1 and K2 spied a baby seal in the bay over the weekend...here's a picture we took of the baby seal on our Nokia Phone...mailed to self over Ovi Mail (shameless promotion you say...execution on 4 P's I say ;-) )...